While there’s no question that food allergies are real — and for some, potentially life-threatening — people who self-diagnose as food allergic without consulting a medical professional may be misinterpreting their symptoms as an allergic reaction, the study authors wrote.
In those cases, what the individuals were experiencing could be a sign of food intolerance” or other food related conditions” rather than a true allergic response, lead study author Dr. Ruchi Gupta, a pediatrician and professor of pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Illinois, said in a statement.
Allergic reactions are the immune system’s response to a trigger that is perceived as a threat. Regarding food allergies, when some people eat a certain type of food — such as nuts, shellfish, wheat or dairy — it broadcasts an alarm signal to their immune system, provoking reactions that can vary widely between individuals, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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